# Fly fish setting Created On: 08-11-2023 09:50 am Up:: [[Fly Fishing (MOC)]] Tags:: #note/evergreen🌲 Topics:: Related:: --- ## Introduction “Setting” is when you “set” the hook in the mouth of a fish. It occurs when a fish takes a hook into their mouth, and then, by using one of the following methods, drives the hook into their mouth. The primary methods of setting for fly fishing are: ## Trout Set Swiftly, but not aggressively, lifting the rod from 8/9 o’clock to 11 o’clock. These are typically used with trout and smaller sized game fish with soft mouths - where setting a hook doesn’t require a lot of force - such as salmon and char. The upsides to this method is that it doesn’t require additional training - you’re simply moving the rod upward - and that it works well with dry flies: as the fish emerge to pickup the dry fly from the surface, you continue an upward setting motion. The primary downside is that it’s easy to pull a hook out of a fish’s mouth, especially if they’ve not turned after taking the lure. Additionally, missing the hook set means you’ve pulled the hook out of range for another chance, meaning that you’ll likely need to recast. Finally, the flexing of the rod causes the hookset to lose some of its power. Much of the energy is lost in the flexing of the rod as you pull up. This isn’t so much a concern with soft-mouthed fish such as trout, but may cause a weak hookset in fish with bonier mouths. This loss of power can be the difference between landing a fish, and a fish throwing the hook. ## Strip Set This [video](https://youtu.be/afN9i6gEhec) does a good job demonstrating both of these.